REVIEW: Steel Panther @ Forum Theatre

You’ve gotta hand it to them, Steel Panther are one well-oiled machine that just keeps on going. Once again the glam rockin’ heavy metal heroes of sleaze found themselves on our shores playing to a sold out crowd at the iconic Forum Theatre.

There was no room for supports tonight as this was all about the Panther. Their first show in Australia on their Sunset Strip Live tour, we were going to get not one but two sets from the LA bad boys and there was no shortage of appreciation from the punters. When the lights dimmed and the intro music started, there was definitely a feeling of electricity in the air. Jumping right into their staple opener, Eyes Of A Panther, the band was firing on all guns and sounded incredible. The mix was solid, the performance was spot on and it was game on. Continuing straight into newer number, Goin’ In The Back Door, there was no slowing down. The hits just kept on coming with the classic Asian Hooker and the hilarious Just Like Tiger Woods, before the band got all Australian on us with their track Poontang Boomerang. The green and yellow lighting was a nice touch. Yeah, I noticed.

Glory Hole and 17 Girls In A Row are proof that your songs can be dumb but also catchy and infectious complete with some bitchin’ riffage. We were treated with their Extreme-esque ballad of Girl From Oklahoma and the anthemic Community Property before leaving us with their call to arms Death To All But Metal. The latter never fails to get the crowd amped and jumping, and most of all fist pumping. You can’t fault it. It is what it is and it’s done well.

Set one was over and we had 20 minutes break til the set I was personally more anticipating for. Having grown up on glam rock and heavy metal, and knowing that these guys were a cover band before the Steel Panther moniker, if there was ever going to be a band more suited to doing covers of 80s metal, it should be these guys. They said it themselves that they can play any song from that period and we were going to see if they could live up to the claim.

The burst on to the stage with Motley Crue’s Kickstart My Heart and nailed it as vocalist Michael Starr hit those vocals with complete professionalism and perfection. They were on a roll and jumped right into probably the only Scorpions song that the average person knows, Rock You Like A Hurricane. Van Halen’s Jump came next and with Michael Starr’s previous vocal gig being a member of Van Halen cover band, Atomic Punks, it was no debate that he absolutely nailed it. Just like he nailed his Ozzy Osbourne impersonation during their cover of Crazy Train. From the way Ozzy Scuttles across the stage, to his hand gestures, to his vacant stare, Starr had it down perfect while the crowd was in hysterics. Guitarist Satchel also advised us all he was able to play the track like Randy Rhoads note for note. He didn’t lie. He is as good as he says he is and followed on with a lengthy guitar solo before they tore up the stage with their special guest for the night, Joel O’Keefe from Melbourne’s very own hard rockers, Airbourne.

Bon Jovi’s Living On A Prayer and Def Leppard’s Pour Some Sugar On Me are two party jams that never fail to get the people groovin’. So much so that the stage became increasingly populated with females dancing, some even managed to keep their clothes on. They managed to give us a lesson in bands that have ripped off Whitesnake as they covered Here I Go Again while interjecting it with the likes of the Steve Miller Band and Weezer. The irony obviously being that the bands they claim ripped off Whitesnake were actually doing what they do before David Coverdale got his beast together.

The band finished their set with a crowd pleasing version of Guns N Roses’ Paradise City. It sounded great and while the people in attendance were quite content, there was always room for one more. They granted us one more Panther penned jam, Party All Day, and left us all happy and fulfilled. Basically, this was Steel Panther’s party and we were all invited. So we went and we had the time of our lives.

Seriously, if you take the sound this band has, forget the lyrical content and just hear the songs, you’d be hard pressed to find a band doing glam rock as good as these guys do it today. I’d be keen to see if the majority of their fanbase would still stick with them if they did decide to ditch the comedic lyrics and went for a serious approach, or is it just the comedy that these fans are attracted to? I mean, there’s surely only so many times you can sing the same content over and over before it gets stale? Either way, once again, Steel Panther came and delivered an incredible and highly entertaining live show. While it’s definitely not for everyone, two sold out shows at The Forum tell me that its appeal isn’t dissolving anytime soon.